There Is Blood
by TrtlTot
Summary: A sister/clone of Mahariel Shepard has been discovered. When she is reintroduced to the man who "saved" her, how will her emotions fare? Early Mass Effect gameplay. Mostly just key elements of the games and books mixed with personal story. No James for a while. Just Thellos and her sexy self. Thellos believes in fun now, responsibility later. May contain lemon. Rated M for a reason
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything even vaguely familiar to the Mass Effect series.

I simply own this particular plot line and a select few characters.

Enjoy.

* * *

**Year 2178**

Alliance soldiers swarmed the Cerberus facility. Room after room was cleared of all personnel. Experiments were carted out and processed. And then came the final room. There was no one inside. All lights were off, but there was this strange blue glow coming from the center of the room. The soldiers entered slowly, scanning the room carefully. All eyes fell on the large crystal tank in the center of the room. The soldiers approached, filing into the room. They circled the tank, noticing that there was a strange figure inside the glowing liquid.

"Investigate," spoke the leading unit. One hulking soldier stepped out of the awkward circle and got closer to the tank.

"A woman," he said, taking in the shapely body floating within the liquid. The commanding officer took a quick stride to the tank and glanced into the it. A voice sounded from within the room.

"Sir! I think I can purge the tank here," said the stern female voice. A woman was standing at a control panel.

"Do it. Stark, Banner, Vega. Stay with the girl. Wake her and see what she knows." The three men nodded and saluted the commanding officer as he left the room. The woman by the panel pushed the purging button and proceeded to leave the room. The remaining soldiers filed out after them.

The tank flashed a violent red and a siren sounded. The liquid began draining from thin vents in the bottom of the tank. The young woman's body rocked gently in the liquid and began the slow drift to the floor of the tank. She reached the tank floor with a gentle thud. Her waist length red hair, clung to her luscious, creamy curves, covering her in most of the appropriate spots. Stark went to the tank as the glass top split vertically down the center and opened to the sides. He took a close look at her and called the others over.

"She's not breathing," he said. Banner reached into the tank and took her by the arm. He hauled her limp body up and out of the tank, taking her into his arms. Vega searched the room for something to cover her with, spotting a thin white sheet in the corner of the room. He went and grabbed the sheet, returning in time to see her placed gently on the floor. He tossed the sheet at Stark and he covered her with it. Banner swept her hair out of the way and proceeded to initiate CPR. After a few chest presses, she did not respond. Banner checked for a pulse.

"She has a faint pulse," Banner said. "Not sure why she's not breathing."

"Let me try," spoke Vega. Banner nodded. Vega knelt to the ground beside the woman. He tilted her head and then pinched her nose. He then pressed his lips to hers, noticing the softness, the suppleness of her lips. He then blew air into her lungs. Banner timed out the chest presses. As Vega bent to breathe into her again, her body twitched semi-violently, and she coughed up what appeared to clear water. She raised a numb hand to her mouth, brushing it gently. Her eyes fluttered before fully opening. She had the brightest, most vibrant green eyes Vega had ever seen. She took in a ragged breath, eyes darting left and right.

"It's ok," spoke Vega. Banner nodded with a slight smile, trying to be comforting. Stark knelt down beside her head.

"I'm Sergeant Marcus Stark," he started. "This is Corporal Eric Banner and Private James Vega," he finished, pointing to each in turn. "What's your name, dear?" The young woman clutched the sheet to her chest, and blinked in sheer confusion. She looked from man to man, eyes faltering on James Vega.

"You," she said, voice barely a whisper. James Vega blinked.

"Me?" he said.

"You were in the waking dream. You saved me from the three headed dread hound," she whispered. The men looked at each other, exchanging looks of concern and confusion. James sat back on heels and sighed.

"Three headed dread hound?" he questioned. The woman tucked the sheet around her body and sat up. She leaned towards James.

"Thank you so much," she spoke softly. She got closer to James and laid a gentle kiss upon his lips. James froze, unsure of what to do. Stark and Banner just stared, dumbstruck. James pulled back slowly, taking the unnamed woman by the shoulders.

"You're welcome," he said with a slight nod. He pushed her gently from his body, trying to get space between the mystery woman and himself. Stark snapped back to reality.

"Miss," he called, trying to get her attention. She turned her head in his direction. "What's your name, honey?"

"They called me Thellos," she said simply. She tucked a piece of her long hair behind her ear. "I'm cold." Banner quickly removed his armored vest and pulled his long sleeve shirt from over his head. He handed her the shirt and quickly restored his armor. Thellos pulled the four sizes too big shirt over her head. She stood, shaky at first, and let the shirt hem drop to her knees over the sheet. She then gave a small shimmy, and the sheet spilled to the floor around her ankles. James looked up at her, noticing just how small she really was. She stood about five foot three, with a guessing weight of about 115 pounds. Small and fragile.

"Better?" Banner questioned, adjusting his armored vest against his now naked skin. Thellos shook her head yes.

"Thank you," she said. The three men rose to their feet and towered over the young woman. Stark was about 5'11" whereas Vega stood about 6'1". Banner towered at six foot five. Each of the men were muscled, but each man was shaped differently. Stark was a thin man, obvious built for speed and maneuverability. Banner was bulky man, built like a small tank. James was in the middle, built thick, but with a sense of hidden agility. Thellos looked from man to man again. She took the in hairstyles of each man. Stark had thick slicked back hair, where Banner had a close shaved style. James stood with a mowhawk. Thellos reached a hand out and stroked the mowhawk. James flinched away, unsure of what she was doing. Thellos looked down apologetically.

"Sorry. I didn't know what you were doing," he said quietly. Thellos simply nodded. Stark stepped close to her and took her by the arm.

"We need to get you the Master Sergeant Wesker, Thellos. He'll have a few questions for you," Stark said slowly. Thellos nodded her head again. She allowed him to lead her from the room, Banner and Vega in tow.

~\(=^-^=)/~

"We ran your DNA. We see that you're related to Mahariel Shepard, the hero of Elysium," spoke Master Sergeant Christopher Wesker. Thellos tilted her head to the right, a question plain on her face. Wesker looked at her hard, searching her form information. "Are you not related to Shepard?" He glared at her sternly, waiting for her answer. "We already know the truth. You might as well just tell us." Thellos shifted her head to the left. "Well?"

"I am Mahariel Shepard. I am a genetically altered clone of her. Her victory on Elysium sparked an interest in her. The masters did not wish for the human race to loose her. She is a prize to be cultured and cherished," she spoke in a torrent of information, a haze cast over her eyes. It was as if she had been programmed to reveal the information in such a manor. Wesker blinked at her.

"What?" he said simply.

"I am Mahariel Shepard. I am a genetically altered clone of her. Her victory on Elysium sparked an interest in her. The masters did not wish for the human race to loose her. She is a prize to be cultured and cherished," she repeated as if on a loop.

"So you're a clone, but you read as a sibling on DNA scanners?" asked Wesker.

"That is correct," she responded, eyes still hazed over. Wesker nodded. He then paced a small oval on the floor, thinking deeply about what he had just heard. A clone. A genetically altered clone. She was Shepard, but she was Thellos. Why?

"Why were you created?"

"To preserve the prized chain of DNA that is Mahariel Shepard."

"Why her?"

"She has an ancient strand of DNA that runs back to old mythology. It was discovered upon looking into her after Elysium."

"What ancient strand?"

"Shepard is one of a long line of Mahariel's. There will come a day when the fate of the world will be on her shoulders."

"That's insanity. The fate of the world won't just be on the shoulders of one woman."

"That is all the data this one has access to." Thellos blinked rapidly and placed a hand across her face. She let out and audible sigh. Wesker stared at her intently.

"Did you just say 'data?'" he questioned her.

"While I was in the tank, being grown, they imprinted me with information. On who I was. On who she is. Otherwise I am simply Thellos. Her apparent long lost sister." Thellos looked at the ground, playing with the hem of the long shirt she wore. Wesker snorted, not believing her for a minute.

"Get her to Anderson. See what he wants done with her, Private," he said with sigh. Vega took Thellos by the arm and led her out of the room. they travel through the facility. He escorted her on to the Alliance vessel and took her to a holding cell.

"You'll have to stay here until we get to Earth," James said with a slight somber tone. Thellos looked up at him and nodded her head slightly. She walked into the cell and took a seat on the small bench provided for her. She looked at James with subtle fear on her face. James closed the cell door with the push of a button. He turned and headed back the way he came. He stopped short and glanced over his shoulder. Thellos had her face buried in her hands, obviously crying.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed the story. The first chapter will be out soon.

~Trtltot


	2. Blood Meets

**Year 2183**

**Eden Prime**

The Geth swarmed the area. Thellos grabbed her pet snake, Katsuya, and ran to the back of the building locking and rigging all the doors to explode. She also set a combat drone in every room she passed, hoping beyond hope, that, that would keep the Geth from getting to her. _Why are they here? For the beacon? _she thought to herself. She had just manged to hide herself and Katsuya in the very back of the room, just out of sight, when she heard the first explosion go off. She tried her hardest to keep from squeaking in fear. She just knew that the Geth were going to find her and kill her. Shots were fired, presumably taking out the drones. She could hear them getting closer and closer. She finally heard the last of her drones break down before the door opened. She thought about peeking out of her cover, but hoped that the Geth would just think the room was empty and leave. She squeezed her eyes shut tight.

"Looks clear, Commander," spoke a soft male voice. Thellos' eyes flew open. Humans!

"Someone set those bombs and drones," said a female voice that sounded like honey in the ears.

"I did," Thellos announced from behind cover. She stood up slowly, showing her hands, back to the humans in the room. She turned to face them and realized that there were in fact three people in the room with her. Her eyes instantly fell on the woman in the center. She wore black and red Colossus armor, wielding an upgraded Stiletto pistol. The woman had short red hair and dark, emerald green eyes, a sprinkle of freckles across her nose and cheeks. The look on her face said she knew, but didn't believe, what she was seeing. The man and other woman both looked confused.

"Mahariel,"said Thellos simply.

"You must be Thellos," spoke Shepard.

"What's going on, Commander?" asked the woman. The man nodded his head in agreement.

"This is my... sister. My younger sister. Thellos," answered Shepard. The man and woman exchanged looks.

"We didn't know you had a sister, Commander," responded the man. The woman eyed Thellos curiously, watching as Katsuya wound herself up her arm.

"Thellos, this is Kaiden Alenko and Ashley Williams. We need you to get to safety. We'll talk later," stated Shepard.

"No. I'm coming with you. You saw what I did to the doors and with the drones. I can help," replied Thellos. Shepard thought it over for a moment. Kaiden and Ashley both expected her to say no.

"Fine. You can come with, but stay in the back. You're not wearing any armor," said Shepard. Thellos nodded and looped Katsuya around her neck. Then, with dual omni-tools, she set out four drones, two combat and two defense. She then prepared two attacks, incinerate in one hand, a frosty cryo blast in the other.

"I'm ready," Thellos said with a glint in her eye. Kaiden and Ashley both eyed her, wary of her.

"Commander are you sure about this?" asked Ashley, voice heavy with disdain. Thellos scowled at her, not liking the way she looked at her like she was going to set the three of them on fire.

"Do you let your subordinates all question your decisions, Mahariel?" questioned Thellos, daring Ashley to say another word.

"No. I don't," started Shepard. "Williams you're new to my regime, but you should respect the chain of command enough to not question me." Mahariel was stern with her words, obviously showing a little irritation towards her. Ashley blinked, shifting her feet and adjusting her grip on her assault rifle.

"She has no training, Commander. It's better for your sisters safety if she at least goes back to a safe pick up point," stated Kaiden. Shepard frowned slightly.

"That's where you're wrong. I have three years of N7 training under me. Just like my sister," Thellos corrected, not hesitating on calling Mahariel her sister. She smirked a little and placed a fist on her hip, keeping the incinerate facing away from her body as she cocked her hip to the side. Shepard, Kaiden, and Ashley all looked surprised.

"And just how did you manage that?" wondered Ashley aloud. Shots fired outside. They all looked in the direction of the shots. Shepard brought her gun up and looked at Thellos.

"This conversation will have to be resumed at another time. Thellos you're with us," commanded Shepard. Thellos nodded, moving closer to the small group. The four of them left the room, walking briskly down the long hall to the entrance. Thellos noticed that only a few of the doors were charred or blown apart. As they got closer to the exit, she noticed that a few other doors were shattered, bent, black. She stopped quickly to notice that the doors had been hacked, but a few exploded anyways. She was proud of her handy work, happy to know that even if the door were to be forced open, it might have gone off anyways. She smiled to herself.

Ashley cast a sideways glance back at Thellos. Her hair reached to just above her hips, a bright red that she thought was more product then natural. She then looked at Commander Shepard. Her hair was exactly the same color. _Does the Commander color her hair? _she wondered to herself. Ashley looked back at Thellos. She was about three inches shorter than Shepard. She then noticed that Thellos didn't have freckles like Shepard did. Ashley adjusted the rifle in her hands and returned her focus to in front of her.

Kaiden on the other hand, was beyond consumed with Thellos and the Commander. Since the start of this cruise, his thoughts had been filled by Mahariel Shepard. _Now there's two of them,_ he thought to himself. He took a look at Thellos and instantly enjoyed how she filled out her common scientist uniform. The thin green and white fabric strained over her full breasts and the grey pants she had one fit her like a second skin. He also had to admire the way the thigh high boots climbed her legs. Ashley caught him staring and she cleared her throat, causing all eyes on her. She shrugged and once Shepard and Thellos weren't looking, gave Kaiden a very pointed look. He blushed slightly, realizing he had been caught and went back to focusing on the task at hand. Though his thoughts did wander off to Thellos and Shepard every now and then. He was a man after all.

Mahariel Shepard fought with herself, trying to not look back at Thellos. She had been told what had went down five years ago when she had been discovered. Told that there was no reason to hold her in captivity or to put her to death. Told that she had been sent to a new colony to start a life. Told that she was not just a figment of bad record keeping. Told that Thellos was indeed, very real. _I have a clone, _she thought with a bit of realization. _But she's not my clone. She's my... what did they call her... my genetic sister. _Mahariel shook her head ever so slightly. She hadn't been told that Thellos had received N7 training even though she wasn't military. Oh that would definitely be brought up to Anderson. He was the one who had first told her of Thellos even existing in the first place. How could he not keep her informed of everything this... this... 'genetic sister' was or was not doing. Shepards footsteps faltered for a moment. She took a glance at her team, no one had noticed the stumble. She took the chance to glance at Thellos, she was busy resetting a combat drone. Mahariel then returned to the thought at hand. Thellos was her own being. She had not asked to be created and then picked up by military personnel. Just as Mahariel herself did not ask to be born and then abandoned by her family. _This is going to take some getting used to... She is my... family... after all..._

Thellos was staring a hole into the back of Mahariels head. _Commander Shepard. _The thought was like someone had taken red paint and thrown it on a white canvas. _Commander Shepard. _She felt like she had been slapped in the face with a brick. When all the questioning had ceased five years ago and she was set free, the thought had never occurred to her that she might actually meet the woman whose DNA was the core of her being. She wondered what her 'sister' was like. Did they have similar interests? The same favorite color? Anything in common? Thellos couldn't wait to get a chance to talk to her, she was so excited by just her presence.

The group hadn't traversed very far before they came to the docks of the spaceport. A Turian lay dead in a pool of blue blood. Mahariel and Kaiden claimed it was a Spectre named Nihlus. A wave of cold fear washed over Thellos. This was all real. She had been so fascinated by meeting Shepard that she had forgotten that there was a fight going on with Geth swarming her home. Thellos was about to ask how they knew the turian when Ashley noticed movement and a man Thellos recognized as Powell came scurrying out from behind some crates. Words were exchanged, ending with the group being disgusted with Powell. The man survived due to sheer laziness, hiding behind the crates during his shift to catch a nap. Powell did however, have some good information on the Geth mothership and even managed to point the group in the right direction after the beacon and some Saren character. Powell had said that he was another Turian. Said that he headed to another platform of the spaceport. Said he might be after the beacon. Thellos knew that beacon was trouble the moment it was dug up.

The group headed towards the cargo train. Thellos heard the now all too familiar sound of Geth chatter. Shepard led the team and sent out an overload to fry the synthetic. Ashley unloaded into it while Kaiden warped its defenses. The drones that Thellos had set out earlier charged the Geth, sending out bolts of electricity. Two more Geth came from around the corner. Thellos sent out and incinerate while Mahariel released a cryo blast. A well placed snipe from Ashley finished off that target. Kaiden had engaged the other Geth unit and had managed to stasis it. He then hit with a warp at the same Mahariel overloaded it and the damn thing exploded.

"Nice," whispered Thellos under her breath. They then started their way down the long path to the cargo train control panel and were held up by yet more Geth.

"Ashley, assault rifle in front with concussives," commanded Mahariel.

"You got it," said Ashley, taking point of the team.

"Kaiden, behind Ashley. Stasis what you can, warp the rest. Aim for the head."

"You bet, Commander," he replied, moving behind Ashley in line.

"Thellos, behind me. Get a defense and combat drone up behind you and in front of Ashley." Mahariel and Thellos both fell into line and the four took the walkway at a steady pace. There were at least twenty Geth between them and the control panel. Incinerates, cryo blasts, concussive shots, warps, throws, lifts, the Geth never stood a chance. They reached the panel and Thellos activated it. She turned to look at the rest of the group. Having been so preoccupied by the Commander before, she never really looked at Kaiden and Ashley. Ashley had on pink and white Phoenix armor, while Kaiden wore grey and blue Onyx armor. Thellos thought to say something, anything that would break the awkward silence that had descended upon the group now that there was a break in the fighting. She almost wished a random Geth would land on the train as they traveled. Almost.

The train pulled into port and the first thing Thellos noticed was the Geth setting large bombs on the catwalks. Mahariel ordered her to disarm them while they covered her. The four of them moved in a cohesive unit, disarming and killing. In about two minutes, the bombs were all disabled and the Geth numbers had dwindled down to none. They had reached the beacon. Saren was no where to be found.

Mahariel proceeded to hail the ship, the Normandy, as Thellos over heard. She heard Kaiden and Ashley talking, but was more fascinated by the beacon. She was standing rather close to it when Kaiden suddenly walked past her. It was as if he were being drawn to it. It was a few moments before Thellos realized that he was in fact being dragged toward the beacon by some unseen force. Thellos moved to grab him, but Mahariel got to him first, throwing herself into him. It was then she who was pulled toward the beacon. Something forcibly lifted her into the air, holding her there.

"Shepard!" cried Kaiden from his spot on the ground. Ashley rushed to him.

"No, don't touch her! It's too dangerous!" she yelled. Thellos was frozen, unsure of what to do. When Shepards body finally fell back to the ground, the beacon was distroyed in an explosion and the three of them rushed to her. Kaiden swept Mahariel up into his arms. As if on cue, the shuttle to the Normandy arrived. They boarded with a limp commander, barely breathing. Ashley practically screamed into her headset the Shepard was down. The shuttle shuddered hard as it kicked into gear, getting them back to the Normandy in a matter of minutes. When they arrived, a woman with short silver hair and a bald black man was waiting for them. They rushed Mahariel to the med bay.

"Alenko! What happened?" barked the man.

"I don't know, Captain Anderson," started Kaiden. At the mention of Andersons' name, Thellos' ears perked up. She had been so caught up in what was going on with Shepard that she didn't really look at the new people in front of her. She had done it twice now in one day. It was very much unlike her to be so unaware of her surroundings. "One moment, I'm talking about the beacon. The next thing I know, Commander Shepard is launching herself into me and tossing me to the ground. I don't know what happened."

"Captain," cut in Ashley, "Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams. It was as though the beacon was pulling them to it!"

"Get her on the table," spoke the presumed doctor. Thellos stayed as quiet as possible, trying to avoid any attention, especially from Anderson. She didn't know what would happen to her when he finally noticed she was there. Mahariel was placed delicately on to the table. "I need to run some tests. I'll let you all no when she wakes up."

"I'd like to stay and wait. I feel like this is all my fault," spoke Kaiden. The doctor looked past him to Anderson, who gave a small nod.

"Very well, you can stay. The rest of you need to go however," replied the doctor. Ashley and Anderson both gave small nods and headed to the door. Thellos pressed herself into the corner, wishing she had a tactical cloak to hide herself as Anderson got closer. Her eyes grew wide as he finally looked at her. He frowned in thought for a moment, then his eyes widened with recognition. He simply took her by the arm and led her to his quarters on the crew deck. Ashley watched as they went, instinctively knowing there was history there.

"What are you doing here?" questioned Anderson once the door closed behind them. He let go of her arm and turned to really look at her. She looked just like a sister of Shepard should. Similar facial construction, same eye shape and nose. Same natural up tilt of the lips. Similar chin and cheekbones. She's beautiful, but a different type of beauty then Mahariel. Where eShepard had a war torn beauty that crept into the soul, Thellos was that of an innocent child amongst a field of flowers and her natural beauty was astonishing.

"I live here. Well not here per se, but on Eden Prime. I moved here six months ago."

"Why?"

"I was contacted to workout some kind of simple defense system. My team-" Thellos cut off. The dawning realization that her entire team was dead hit her like a ton of bricks. She reached a hand up to her throat, touching Katsuya. During the fight, she had honestly forgotten all about her loyal pet. The fact that she was still there or hadn't tightened around her neck, had surprised her. "My God..."

"A lot of good people died out there," spoke Anderson, knowing what she was thinking.

"They were simple technicians. They didn't have any combat training..." Anderson stood by silently, letting Thellos cope with her thoughts. As she was coping it then hit her as to why he wanted to know why she were there. "Do you think I'm working with Cerberus?"

"You are a..." trailed off Anderson looking for the right word.

"Experiment?"

"Yes, for lack of a better word. You are an experiment of theirs. When you were released as a civilian, we kept an eye on you for about one year, curious to see if Cerberus would try to take you back. When they didn't-"

"You offered me the N7 training."

"Correct."

"You know, I never asked before, but why did you offer me the training?"

"We wanted to see just how much like Shepard you were. See if you would score similarly to her."

"And?"

"You have some of the best scores we have ever seen. We thought to recruit you to join the Marines, but higher ups didn't want it. So you were released again." Thellos just stared at Anderson. She didn't know what to say. She wanted to say that she was happy, that she was proud she scored so high, but she figured that it was really thanks to her genetics, thanks to Mahariel.

"Thank you..." whispered Thellos. "So what are you going to do with me?"

"Well for now I need to speak with Alenko and Williams. Go up to Joker, the pilot, and tell him to take us to the Citadel," said Anderson. He then left the room and Thellos took in a deep breath. She took in a deep breath, and uncoiled Katsuya from her neck. She looked the tiny snake in the eyes and made a kissy face.

"Mommy loves you," she said. "You and me are gonna have to stick together." She then placed the snake atop her head and felt the tail curl gently around her neck as an anchor. She walked from the room, spotting Ashley and Anderson talking near the Med Bay doors. Ashley looked at Thellos, an almost discernible scowl on her face. Thellos looked away quickly and walked around what she found to be an elevator. She turned her head and saw that there were two flights of stairs leading up. She started up the left flight when one of the soldiers stopped her.

"Miss, you have a serpent on your head," he spoke, slight worry and confusion on his face.

"I know, but thank you," she said with a smile. He nodded and walked way as she continued up the stairs. The door at the top opened to reveal the CIC. She had seen plenty before this one, but this... the way everything was positioned... she was left breathless. This had to be an engineer's playground. She had to stop herself from going over to one side consoles and poking around. Katsuya shifted on her head, causing a curtain of hair to cascade in front of her face. Katsuya slithered off the side of her head, plopping down on her right shoulder, and circled around her throat just tight enough to let Thellos know she was there.

Thellos ran her hands through her long hip length hair, pushing it out of her face. She looked around the CIC again and noticed a long hall. She figured that the hall lead to the pilots chair and followed it. Low and behold, it led directly to the cockpit. She saw a man in a baseball cap sitting in a chair in the center of the small room.

"Joker?" she questioned, moving to stand just off to the left of him. The man turned his head.

"Yeah?" When his eyes connected to the red haired, green eyed, goddess, his jaw dropped. "Who are you?"

"I'm Thellos. Are you Joker?"

"Yeah, yeah. But who _are _you."

"Oh! I'm Commander Shepard's little sister." No hesitation.

"Commander Shepard has a sister?"

"Apparently," Thellos giggled. "Captain Anderson told me to tell you to take us to the Citadel."

"Right," said Joker under his breath. He turned back in his chair and set the destination. Thellos shrugged her shoulders, walking back towards the crew deck. Joker gave her second look, obviously gawking at the way her ass swayed as she walked away. _No way Shepard has that for a sister and didn't tell anyone, _he thought with a sly smirk. He then turned back in his chair and resumed his work.

As Thellos reached the end of the stairs, she looked at the elevator door. She thought about taking it down to the lower level, but she didn't know if she had permission to explore the ship. She walked around the elevator, headed back toward the common area. She sees that Ashley is sitting at a table with a few crewmen. She knew that Ashley and herself were not going to get along. She could feel it in her bones. Thellos simply moved by her and headed towards Anderson's quarters. She needed to know what was going to be done with her on a long term bases and their previous conversation had done nothing to really answer that.

As she approached Anderson's quarters, a wave of dizziness washed over her. Something was wrong. Not with her. With Mahariel. She could feel it. Thellos' head started to throb. She pressed her fingers into her temple, hoping to somehow stem the pain. The dizzy feeling grew more overwhelming and she reached out to brace herself. Her vision was getting dark, and the room was spinning out of control. Thellos collapsed to her knees. She heard a voice call out, but couldn't make out what was being said. She felt as though her pet snake, Katsuya, were tightening around her throat. Thellos grabbed with numb fingers at the snake, but to no avail. She grasped at the air and toppled over to her side. The pain in her head was so immense she curled into the fetal position. Nothing like this had ever happened to her before. But she was in so much pain. Finally, she wasn't able to handle whatever it was that was happening to her and she passed out, laying limp on the floor.


	3. Blood Ties

Thellos shifts in her sleep, waking ever so slightly. She hears a voice she seemed to recognize. Her eyes flutter open, and she finds herself in the medbay on the Normandy. She sits up and looks around. The silver haired doctor from before comes to her side.

"You shouldn't be moving yet," spoke the doctor. "I'm doctor Karin Chakwas. You've been under my care for about twenty-two hours. How are you feeling?"

"I feel like I got hit by an old MAC truck," Thellos replied.

"So tell me Thellos, what happened exactly?"

"How do you know my name?"

"When Ashley brought you in, she told me your name. She seemed quite worried."

"Ashley? Worried? About me? Sure. I don't see us get along very well at all."

"And why is that? Did something happen between you?"

Thellos looked at the doctor. "I've seen how see looks at me. Like see would rather be set on fire then work with me. She doesn't trust me, and has no reason not to." Thellos shifted on the table, crossing her legs and slouching over herself. She then felt around her neck, searching for Katsuya. Her fingers brushed her bare throat. She then looked behind her to find the three and a half foot albino milk snake coiled on her pillow. She reached a hand out and gently stroked the snakes scales. Katsuya raised her head and flicked her tongue out in Thellos' direction. "Has she been here the whole time?"

"Hissed at whoever came near you. Had to be careful while running tests. All the results read normal, though you have a very similar brain wave output to the commander, but that's about the strangest thing I saw. What happened to you?"

"I don't... I don't know... I just... had this wave of pain come over me. I thought... something was wrong with Marri..."

"Marri?" questioned Chakwas

"Commander Shepard." Thellos corrected.

"What did you think was wrong with her?"

"I just felt like something was wrong. Like something in her shifted on a universal scale. Wait," Thellos looked around the bay. "Where is Commander Shepard? How long was I out again?"

"She's fine now. Most likely giving her story to the Council. And you were down for twenty-two hours. Besides looking a little pale, everything reads normal."

"So we're at the Citadel already? Oh wow... I need to speak with Anderson. Can you tell me where he is?"

"I believe he is with Ambassador Udina on the Presidium." started Chakwas. "Though you really should rest some more."

"I just "rested" for twenty-two hours. I need to speak with the Captain." With that, Thellos hopped off the table and scooped up Katsuya, placing her back around her neck. She made sure she steady before taking a few steps. Feeling balanced, Thellos proceeded out of the medbay. She walked with a brisk pace, finding her way to the ships main exit. She was about to open the door when she heard the Normandy VI welcome someone aboard on the other side of the door. Thellos took a step back, not wanting to be in the way. When the door opened it revealed Kaiden Alenko and a tall male Turian.

"Who are you?" fell out of her mouth before she even had time to think about her words. The Turian looked at Thellos and cocked his head to the side. He opened his mouth to speak when Kaiden started talking.

"This Garrus Vakarian. He's a new crewmate... Though honestly... nevermind that was kind of rude..." trailed off Kaiden.

"What were you gonna say? I can take it," spoke Thellos. Garrus looked between the two. Kaiden shook his head and left the two of them alone. Garrus extended his hand.

"I know I was already introduced, but I'm Garrus Vakarian."

"I'm Thellos Shepard."

"So you are related to the Commader. I thought as much. You look very similar to her. Just longer hair and no freckles. And now that i really look at you, your nose is a little smaller." Thellos brought her hand to her nose and looked up at Garrus. "Sorry. I don't mean to insult you."

"No, it's just I... I dunno," she said with a slight giggle. "Well I really have to go and speak with Captain Anderson. I don't really know if I'll see you again, so I'm gonna say goodbye."

"Why? Aren't you apart the crew?"

"No. I was on Eden Prime when Mahariel landed. I helped get to the beacon, but I don't belong here. That's why I need to go talk with Anderson."

With that she gave a slight wave and left. Thellos quickly located a Rapid Transit console and called a car. After a short ride, she arrived on the Presidium floor. She walked up the steps to Embassy offices. She found Undina's and entered the office to find the Ambassador, the Captain, Mahariel, Ashley, a Quarian, and a Krogan.

"You can't just go around recruiting new members without offical-" Undina stopped mid-sentence, sending a glare at Thellos.

"Excuse me," Thellos said, turning on her heel to leave.

"Shepard!" called Udina.

"Yes?" answered both Mahariel and Thellos at the same time.

"Not you! The clone!"Undina nearly shouted at Mahariel while pointing at Thellos. Thellos walked further into the room, nearing the Krogan.

"Can I help you sir?" questioned Thellos.

"You can tell me what you were doing on Eden Prime!" Udina was livid, voice volume so high, that shouting no longer covered it.

"Udina, I already told you what she said. You know why she was there. You looked into yourself," Anderson said, trying to calm the sudden situation. Udina let out a huff, and turned his back on the room. The Krogan grunted and Ashley was staring at Thellos like she had spouted a second head. 'What?' mouthed Thellos at Ashley. She just continued to stare. Thellos let out a breath and shook her head. Mahariel looked back at Thellos and Ashley, eyes narrowing.

"I suppose you could be of some use, Clone," muttered Udina. Thellos felt her eyes widen and tilted her head to the left.

"What did you call me?" asked Thellos, voice somewhat strained. Mahariel reached a hand out to Thellos, trying to calm her before anything could really happen.

"I called you what you are. A clone."

"I have a name!" shouted Thellos. She moved passed the Krogan and Ashley. Moved passed Mahariel and Anderson. She stood directly in front of Udina. "I have a name."

"Of course you do, but you're an experiment. You're not even truly human," said Udina smugly.

Thellos sank back slightly. Everyone in the room had gone completely silent. Thellos then clenched her jaw and swung on the Ambassador. Her fist connected with the right side of Udina's face. His head snapped to the side and he threw his arms out to catch himself.

"Since I'm not truly human, you have no authority over me. Fuck this. I'm going shopping." Thellos stormed from the room. As soon as the door closed behind, Thellos cradled her hand. She sucked in a breath and walked away, headed towards the wards.

~\(=^-^=)/~

Thellos was sitting at the bar in Flux when Captain Anderson and Mahariel walked up to her. Thellos rolled her eyes and turned from the two of them.

"You here to arrest me?" she questioned.

"Actually, we're here to recruit you," said Anderson.

"We want you to join our crew. We want you on the Normandy," spoke Mahariel. Thellos looked back and forth between the both of them, looking for the lie in the words. Her faced softened.

"You're serious?" Thellos asked with a small voice. Mahariel and Anderson both shook there heads yes. A small tear welled up in Thellos' right eye. "Really? Oh that's spectacular! Thank you so much!" Thellos threw herself at the two of them, embracing them in a strong hug. Anderson cleared his throat and Mahariel made a strained face. Thellos let go of the both of them. "Sorry. I'm just super excited."

"Well we need to get out of here and head back up to the Presidium to deliver some data to the Council about the Geth," said Anderson. "We'll explain it all on the way." With that, the three of them left Flux, Thellos toying with the new omnitool she had bought. Anderson and Mahariel explained all that had transpired since they had arrived at the Citadel. The recruitment of Garrus, Wrex, and Tali. The fact that Marri had wiped out a small gang affiliated with the Shadow Broker and even what Tali's data entailed. Thellos was fascinated with all the information and started a log on her omnitool. She decided to keep detailed logs of everything that was going down, feeling that someday it would all come into question. Now of course she hadn't been there for much of it, but she would try to fill in the gaps later.

Once the three of them arrived at the tower, Ashley and Wrex, were waiting with Udina, who happened to have a beautiful blue a purple bruise developing over his cheekbone. Thellos gave him a sinister smile, and he winced in reaction. Ashley smirked slightly, but then went back to looking like someone pissed in her coffee. The lot of them went up the steps and delivered the geth data, finally exposing Saren for the traitorous bastard that he was. But that wasn't enough for Udina. He demanded that the council send a fleet after him. Even Thellos knew that that might mean war between council space and the terminus systems. When one of the council members pointed that out, Thellos couldn't help but smile. Then the unheard of happened. Mahariel was named the first human Spectre in history. The six of them shuffled off to the side and Udina went into a miniature speech about all the things that Marri was going to need. Thellos couldn't help but look on in approval as her genetic sister glowed with pride. Udina and Anderson then left the group, heading out to take care of acquiring all that would be needed to pursue Saren. Thellos then looked at Mahariel.

"So we need to go shopping," Thellos said simply. Ashley rolled her eyes and Wrex grunted.

"Why?" questioned Mahariel.

"For new equipment. I've seen what all of you are wearing, and it's not gonna live up to snuff," Thellos answered.

"And with what money are we going to get this new gear? I mean I have a few thousand credits to outfit maybe a few of us, but not the whole ground team." said Mahariel with a sigh. Thellos grinned.

"These last five years have not been spent with me sitting on my ass. I have a few million credits saved up," spoke Thellos. Marri's eyes bugged and Ashley's jaw dropped. Wrex seemed indifferent about the whole thing, grunting slightly. "Now I'm not saying I can pay for everything, it would be better to actually acquire funding for it. As for weapons and armor, I can put out for that. But things like omnitools, bio-amps, weapon and armor upgrades... I can't swing that. I've been saving so much for a reason." The three of them just kinda stood there staring at her. "What?"

"What exactly have you been doing for the past five years?" questioned Ashley, eyes burning into Thellos.

"Honestly? I take a lot security set up jobs. People are willing to put out a lot of credits to secure there things," answered Thellos. Mahariel nodded, knowing full well what some people will do to keep there stuff safe. Ashley, on the other hand, didn't believe anything. Knowing that Thellos was some weird clone thing of the commander... She couldn't believe that Commander Shepard would call that thing a sister, let a lone human. Ashley didn't trust Thellos at all.

Wrex looked at the three humans. The darker skinned one, Ashley, was not a friendly one. He could tell that she was not trusting of anything she would deem unnatural and alien, meaning the haired red head, and all of the new crew members. He would keeping an eye on her, and a laser point, too. He liked the way the short haired red head worked. She would get the job done, one way or another. She seemed tough, but that caring part of her that he saw might get in the way one day. The other red head, Thellos, was unknown to him for the moment, but clones usually come with trouble. Or so he has learned in his line of work.

Mahariel hailed the Normandy, requesting that Tali, Garrus and Kaiden meet them on the Presidium near the financial district. When everyone was together, Thellos noticed a little spark between Kaiden and Marri. The seven of them first went to the Emporium. There they found found armor for Thellos, Wrex, and Garrus. A light Collosus, a medium Crisis, and a light Phantom respectively. They then moved down to the wards, starting in C-sec. There they headed down to the requisitions office and picked up new guns for everyone. Thellos chose a Karpov pistol. Marri got a new HMWP pistol. Wrex picked up a shotgun, the HMWSG. Garrus had the Volkov sniper rifle. Tali the Sokolov shotgun. Ashley grabbed the Kovalyov assault rifle. Kaiden managed to snag the Razor pistol. Once everyone had a gun they liked, the group headed to the upper wards, where they found Ashley and Kaiden armor. A medium Mercenary fit Ashley perfectly, while a light Predator L armor fit Kaiden like a glove. With just Tali needing some new armor, seeing as Marri deemed her Collosus fit for duty, they made there way to the lower wards and finally found some decent Quarian light armor, another Collosus to be exact.

With the group outfitted for war, they headed back to the boat. When they arrived at the dock, Udina and Anderson were there. Undina started talking again, and Thellos instantly stopped listening, but then she heard that Anderson was stepping down. She looked from Udina to Anderson. Anderson was shaking his head and described the Normandy, saying that she is the perfect ship for a Spectre. Then the two of them starting talking about where to start in the mission to find Saren, while everyone just kinda stared, dumbstruck. Mahariel was the only one able to respond and ask question. Thellos on the other hand was so surprised that she kinda faded out, picking up on only key elements of the conversation like, Feros, Noveria, and Liara T'soni. The group finally boarded the ship and Thellos heard Mahariel telling Joker to set course to Artemis Tau cluster.

~\(=^-^=)/~

Thellos had settled on a bunk in the crew quarters. She had changed the common grey green top of her scientist uniform to a more vibrant lime green that made her eyes pop. She headed down to the cargo bay and placed her new armor and weapon in one of the lockers. As she was making her back to the elevator, she spotted Mahariel coming up the ramp from Engineering. She looked up and spotted Thellos as she headed into the elevator. Thellos waved her to hold it. The two of them stood in the elevator enveloped in an awkward silence.

"We need to talk," spoke Mahariel.

"I know," replied Thellos. The elevator stopped.

"Come to my quarters," Mahariel said in a slight authoritative tone. Thellos nodded. The two of them made the short trek to Captain Andersons old quarters, now belonging to Mahariel. Marri had done some slight remodeling. There was a bed in the back of the room with a long couch under the window beside it. There was a desk in the front room with a two chairs facing out toward the window to the left of the room. Mahariel motioned to one of the chairs while she went to the back room. Thellos heard the clunk of boots hitting the floor and figure that Mahariel was finally changing out of her armor.

"So why wait so long before taking off your armor?" called Thellos.

"I was a bit busy checking on the new crew. With a Krogan and Turian on board... well you never be too careful."

"I get that."

"So when I woke up in the medbay, you were on the bed next to mine. What happened?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. I just had this real serious head pain and kinda knocked out," Thellos answered deciding to leave out the parts about her knowing that something was wrong, especially knowing that nothing was wrong per se, but that Marri had had strange dreams, visions even.

"Interesting..." _She knows I'm lying..._ thought Thellos.

"Yeah... I'm kinda thinking that it might actually have something to do with you..."

"How so?"

"Well... I am... you know... you... In a sense. I'm thinking that when something cellular happens to you, it might happen... to me, too. But delayed and way down played."

"Interesting theory... We should probably have Chakwas run some tests on us. I know that my cellular print is on file."

"Mine is, too. Then again my everything is on file. And yeah that would probably be a good idea."

"Probably."

"So what happened with the beacon?"

"You were there."

"I know, but... I mean after. What exactly did you see?"

"I'm not really sure... Death, destruction. The Reapers."

"Oh... That's not much to go on."

"What about you? You see anything? Since you think we're connected on a cellular level?"

"No... Just a lot of pain."

"Hm... So tell me about the training you recieved," said Mahariel coming around the corner of the back room. She was wearing short, black spandex shorts, and navy blue tank top. The tank top had a darker blue border across the breasts. She suddenly looked normal. Not like **THE **Commander Shepard, but more like Mahariel Shepard. She looked small and fragile, except for the few scars that modern medicine couldn't heal. Aside from one small scar under her right eye, she was perfect. A dash of freckles across the nose. Dark green eyes. Full lips. The very definition of beauty.

Thellos shook her head, letting her hair cascade in front of her face and body. She the waves of gentle curls with both hands and them to the sides of her face. Her bright green eyes peered out at her sister. She stared openly into her face, semi focused on her nose. Mahariel's nose was of average size. Thellos pressed her fingers gently to her own face. She felt her nose, her cheekbones, her lips, chin, brow. She really was clone. There were subtle differences between the two, making it just enough to be believable when others were told they were siblings.

"My training? It was the same as yours. Three years of seven levels of hell. Beyond long days, ridiculous fighting conditions. Though really for me I guess it was four years..."

"Four years?"

"Yeah. When I first woke up, I was detained and questioned for about a month. After that, as I now know, I was kept under observation for a year. _Then_ I was offered the training. According to Anderson, higher ups wanted to see how my scores would compare to yours. I apparently did well enough, because I was awarded the N7. Anderson said a few thought to have me join the Marines, but others said no. So again, I was left to my own devices." Mahariel looked at Thellos. Saw the slight anger that masked her face.

"How does that make you feel?"

"Pissed. I feel like all I am to the whole damn universe is an experiment. I didn't ask for this. Before five years ago I was quite literally, nothing! And for the first four years... I'm questioned, kept under observation, and tested. Yes I had side jobs that made me feel human enough, and I even earned a couple mil. But it's like the old saying, 'Money doesn't buy happiness,' but here we are. I'm rich and I'm bored."

"Then why not a mansion on Earth or a nice place on the Presidium. Why work with colonies like Eden Prime?"

"Like I said I was bored. Plus I told you earlier that I was saving for something special. Plus comfort after I get it."

"What are you saving for, if you don't mind?"

"I do mind. We might be 'genetic' sisters, but we know nothing about each other after that. I don't expect you to tell your darkest secrets right off the bat, so don't think you'll get mine."

"Oh, touchy... Sorry. How about we get to know each other. What do you first remember?"

"Hm... Well... Okay. It's a dream. I dreamed about a man who rescued me from a three headed dog."

"What?"

"Cerberus."

"Again. What?"

"According to ancient mythology, there was a three headed dread hound that guarded the gates to the underworld. That hound was called Cerberus. I am Cerberus experiment. A man woke me waking dream. Freed me from the conscious slumber that I had been in for I don't know how long. But the man I dreamed of was the man who brought breath into my lungs. He saved me. That's my first memory."

"Wow... That's an intense memory. So where exactly did you go when you released from military custody?"

"London. When I wasn't doing the training, I had a flat in the city. Then when the training was done, I got the contract for Eden Prime. And now here we are."

"Here we are..."

"What about you. Do... do we have family?"

"No. It's just us. If my... our, parents are out there, they don't care. I've been in the news vids enough for them to know that I'm alive and well, and there has never been any form of contact."

"Oh... Sorry to hear that.."

"It's ok. Anything else you want to know?"

"In all honesty, anything I really wanted to know, I looked up on the extranet. I never looked into your family, though. Felt it was a breach of privacy..."

"And looking into the rest wasn't?"

"Sorry. I was curious about the woman... about the woman I had come from..."

"Commander?" sounded Joker's voice over the intercom. Both girls jumped slightly.

"Yes, Joker?" answered Mahariel.

"If you could come up on deck, that would be great," he responded. Mahariel looked over at Thellos, who simply shrugged.

"Sure thing, Joker. I'll be right up," said Marri.

"Great," spoke Joker.

"Well, I guess we can talk another time. Duty calls," sighed Mahariel. Thellos nodded and rose from her seat. The two walked forth from the room. Thellos made for crew quarters to change her clothes and get some rest. Mahariel moved to head up the stairs. As Thellos reached the door to the cabin, it swept open on it's own. Out came Kaiden in some plain grey pajama pants. His eyes hit Marri as she passed and his jaw dropped, eyes visibly widening.

"You're drooling Lieutenant," whispered Thellos as she squeezed passed into the room. Kaiden snapped to attention and turned to face Thellos who giggled slightly. She undid the fastening of her shirt and pulled it off. Again, Kaiden's attention was caught by a Shepard. She had creamy colored skin that seemed to call to him. He found himself taking a step toward her, before he caught himself. He lurched from the room as she started on getting her boots off. Thellos looked after with a slight smile. _This is gonna be fun,_ she thought at the idea of teasing Kaiden. She got her boots off and proceeded to shimmy out of her tight pants. She then dug out some black, snug fitting, cotton capris and pulled them on. Thellos then found a grey tank top and pulled it over her head. She then cozzied down in bunk and happily drifted off to sleep.

~\(=^-^=)/~

The Normandy lurched into action as the land above the ruins began to crumble. Mahariel, Wrex, Ashley, and an Asari made it on the ship in the nick of time. The Normandy climbed higher in the sky as the ground below erupted in molten sulfur. The lava like substance rose into the air like someone dropped a large rock in a puddle.

"Get us out of here, Joker!" shouted Mahariel as she came through the door. Thellos rushed from the console she had been working at in the CIC to her sister.

"What's going on?" she questioned. Mahariel brushed past her, calling into the intercom over earpiece for all ground team members to meet on deck. Thellos followed Marri into the comm room. Wrex, Ashley, and the Asari followed after. The rest of the ground crew filed into the room. Mahariel introduced the Asari as Liara T'soni, the very one that Udina had mentioned earlier.

Joker cmae over the intercom with a lame joke about frying sensors. Liara then snipped at the remark and admitted that she doesn't have a lot of experience with humans. The group exchange a few quips about why Saren wanted Liara and how old she is. Liara then went into this short monologue on her knowledge on the Protheon extinction. She explained how the universe seemed to have swept clean of all proof that the Protheons even existed. Some how the conversation came around to Liara peering into the mind of Commander Shepard. When the connection broke, both seemed slightly paler. Liara was beyond excited what she had seen. She managed to gather that the visions was incomplete. Nothing that really helped. Liara then became light headed and Kaiden pointed out that she most likely hadn't eaten or rested in a while. Mahariel dismissed the crew and Thellos walked up to her.

"I felt something," she whispered as she went passed. Joker then patched in the council and Thellos felt the door swoosh shut behind her.

* * *

I'm so sorry for the time gap in between chapters...

Serious writers block.

I hope to be able to start updating regularly~!

Rate and comment.


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